Engine-starter.



V. BENDIX.

ENGINE STARTER.

APPLICATION FILED-OCT. 12. 1915.

Patented Aug. 6, 1918.

I a SHEETS-SHEET I v. BENDIX.

ENGINE STARTER. APPLICATION FILED OCT. f2. 1916.

1,274,370. Patented Aug.'6, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET Z- fln vmvma. Z I

' 'I B) vfauwz WITNESSES:

M ATTORNEYS.

- V. BENDIX.

ENGINE STARTER. APPLICATION FILED ocT.12, IBIS- 1 274,370. Patented Aug. 6, .1918.

' a SHEETS-SHEET s.

wmvassas; v 7g R.

y JAM, fa%

- 40 ATTORNEYS.

. operated by UNITED STATES PATENT. OFFICE.-

vnvcmrr nnnmx, or cnreaoo, rumors; ENGINE-STARTER. x v M 4 V Specification of Letters remit. P t t d A 6, 1913,

To all whom it may concern:

, Be it known that I, VINCENT Bnnorx, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chica 0, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Im rovements in Engine-Starters, of which t is following is a specification.

My invention relates to a starter for an engine such as as gas engine, and the object thereof is to provides. simple, eflicient and reliable device of this character to be a prime mover of any kind, such for instance as an electric motor.

My starter embodies as a materi 1 part of its organization that type of drive or transmission exempllfied 1n patents heretofore 1ssued to me, for instance Patent No. 1,125,935,

dated January 26, 1915, and. Patent No.

1,172,864, dated February 22, 1916. This type characterized by a prlme of engine starter is electr1c motor or motor mover (such as an generator of the two unit and single unit starter systems respectively,) and a transmission or drive for transmitting the power of the motor by means of a rotatable memshaft, and. a driving member such as a pinion, mounted thereon, for transmitting some member or part of the engine to be started, such as the fly-wheel thereof.

The object of my present invention is to rovide a transmission. or drive of the general character described, driven either by a starting motor unit or by a motor generator, constructed and arranged to mesh anddemesh an auxiliary gear or pinion with the fly wheel gear or other member of the engine.

-ever, more particularly intended connection with a motorgenerator set 111 This special drive is, howfor use in which a constantly rotating condition .fai'mature shaft is presented. As shown, this the fly-wheel of the engine.

is a sectional special transmission standard construction of Bendix transmisembodies a regular in addition a certain opbetween that pinion and Briefly speaking, this operating connection consists of a separate or auxiliary pinion or gear which is operated and controlled by the pinion of the screw shaft for the purpose of meshing and demeshing the'gauxiliary pinion as respects the fiy-wheel.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 elevation on the line 11 of Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the arrow;

sion or drive and eratmg connection aforesaid.

prises essentially automatically Fig. 2 a section on the-line 2.-2 of Fig.

1, Fig. 3 a section of a modified form of construction; Fig. 4 an elevation of one side of the pinion 1-2; and Fig. 5 an elevation of the spring retainer 15. f

The construction and mode of operation of the standard Bendixdrive embodied in the organization about to be explained are the same as that illustrated in my patents It will therefore be sufficient to the parts by reference 11 merals as follows: 1 is the armature shaft, 2 is the hollow screw shaft thereon, 3 the pinion or gear screw-threaded on the screwshaft and 4 the spring. driving connection between the outer endof the shaft 1 and the driving head 2. A portion'of the casing of the motor is indicated at This motor may be either a singleunit or a motor genmerely designate erator.

, The new or additional portion of this new organization of transmission or drive coma pinion or gear operated and controlled in its movements, both rotary and longitudinal, by the pinion 3 of the standard drive, whereby such additional pinion is adapted to be meshed with and demeshed from the gear teeth 5*.of a fly wheel 5 or other rotatable part of the engine to be started.

Describing this additional or o cratingconnection between the pinion 3 an the flywheel of the engine, the same comprises a stationary shaft 6 mounted at one end in the-boss a of the motor casin and bracket 7, such shaft being pre against rotation and longitudinal movement by a pin 8 passing through such shaft, bushing 9 and bracket 7. On this shaft is mounted, for both rotary and longitudinal movement, an auxiliary or second pinion 10 which is in such position as to become meshed with the pinion 3 when the latter advances longitudinally on its screw shaft 2 when the motor is started, as hereinafter explained. This pinion 10 is k tudinally along the shaft 6 to mesh with the teeth 5 of the fly-wheel as indicated by the dotted lines. 4

The pinion 10 is provided on one side with a cylindrical extension 11 having a reduced middle portion 11 and-end flanges or shoulders 11 and 11 respectively. .Within this reduced portion 11 a part or projection of the pinion 3 is adapted to move and to cooperate with said shoulders 11 and 11, in

the present instance the weight disk 3" being utilized for this purpose.

' Describing the operation of this transmission or drive, the standard transmission operates in the usual way except that the pinion 3 does not mesh directly with the flywheel as in my patents aforesaid, but meshes with the pinion or gear 10 and also in its movement longitudinally of the screw shaft bodilymoves or slides the pinion 10 to the left, Fig. 2, into anesh with the fly-wheel teeth," as shown indotted lines. This sliding of the pinion 10 is caused by the contact Of the weight disk 3 against the shoulder 11. After the engine has started on its own power and the pinion 3 has moved back to normal or home position, this weight disk after traversing the length of the reduced portion 11 will contact the shoulder 11 anddemesh the pinion 10 from the fiy-wheel and retract it to normal position, as shown in full lines in Fig. 2.

In case the teeth of pinions 3 and 10' should abut end to end, the pressure is released by the compression actlon of the spring 4 while these pinions are being 1 brought into mesh. In like manner, the

throughout, inasmuch as electric motor automatically causes the pressure is relieved in case the teeth of pinion 10 and the fly wheel should abut end to end.

In this manner and by these means the transmission or drive is entirely automatic the starting of the meshing ofthe pinions and the starting of the engine, and the starting of the engine on its own power causes a demeshing of said pinions. so, this transmission is applicable to a motor-generator set in which the armature shaft and consequently the screw shaft are constantly rotating when the engine is running' It is evident that this construction of transmission may be utilized in connection with a single motor unit as a reduction gearing by employing the proper gear ratios between the pinions 3 and 10.

In Figs. 3, 1 and 5 I have shown a modified form of construction according to which pinion is controlled by the regular pinion only as to its meshing operation with respect to the fly wheel, separate means being provided for returning the auxiliary pinion to home or normal position. The corresponding parts in Figs. 2 and 3 are given the same reference characters. In this modification the auxiliary pinion 12 which preferably has in its central bore a bushing 13 is adapted to rotate and to slide longitudinally upon the shaft 6. This pinion is held to its right-hand or normal posi tion shown in .Fig. 3 with a yielding pressure, as by means of the coiled spring 14, one end of which is received .within the circular groove 12 of the auxiliary pinionand the other end within the groove 15 of a spring retainer 15. i This retainer is made of sheet metal having a central opening so as to fit upon and be centered by the shaft 6. his spring holds the auxiliary pinion outwardly toward the right, Fig. 3, against the edge of a sleeve 16 acting as a stop therefor, such sleeve pressing in turn' against the bushing 9.- a" v I The two pinions 3 and, 12 are relatively so mounted thatwhri the pinion 3 is advanced inwardly toward the motor, due to rotation of the screw shaft, it will mesh with the pinion 12v and after full meshing'of these two pinions has taken place the weight disk 3 of the inion 3 will come'into contact with the rlght-hand side of the pinion 12, with'the result that the latter pinion will be moved longitudinally of its axis and along the shaft 6 against the tension of the spring 14: and into mesh with the teeth of the fly Wheel. When the pinion 3 has reached its outermost position toward the left, Fig. 3, when it can no longer move longitudinally, but must rotate with the shaft, it will rotate the pinion 12 and consequently rotate the fly wheel. When the engine starts on its own power and the pinion 3 moves backwardly along the screw shaft to home position, the pinion 12 being thereupon relieved of the pressure holding it to the left against the tension of the spring will move back to its home position, thereby becoming demeshedfrom the fly wheel.

I claim! 1. In a drive of the character described, the combination of a rotatable member, a driving member mounted thereon for rotary movement therewith and longitudinal move ment thereon, and a second driving member which is operated and controlled by the first driving member and which is adapted to be thereby operatively engaged with a part of the engine to be started.

In a drive of the character described, the combination of a rotatable screw shaft, a pinion screw threaded thereon for rotarymovement therewith and longitudinal movement thereon, and a second pinion which is adapted to operatively engage apart of the .engine to be started and with which the first pinion is adapted to mesh when the screw shaft is rotated.

3. In a drive of the character described, the combination of a rotatable screw shaft, a pinion screw threaded thereon for rotary movement therewith and longitudinal movement thereon, and a second pinion which is adapted to operatively engage a part of the engine to be started and with which the first pinion is adapted to mesh when the screw shaft is rotated, said second pinion being arranged in the path of longitudinal movement of the first pinion and adapted to be thereby moved longitudinally.

4. In a drive of the character described,

the combination of a rotatable screw shaft, a pinion screw threaded thereon for. rotary movement therewith and longitudinal movement thereon, and a second pinion which is adapted to operatively engage a part of the engine to be started and with which the first pinion is adapted to mesh when the screw shaft is rotated, said first pinion having operative connection with thesecond pinion for 4 ion and move it longitudinally.

6. In a drive of the character described, the combination of a rotatable screw shaft, a

pinion screw threaded thereon for rotary movement therewith and longitudinal movement thereon, and a second pinion which is adapted to operatively engage a part of the engine to be started and with which the first pinion is adapted to mesh when the screw shaft is rotated, said first pinion having at one end a projection adapted'to engage the;

second pinion and move it longitudinally after the two pinions have meshed.

7 In a, drive of the character described,

the combination of a rotatable screw shaft,

a pinion screw threaded thereon for rotary movement therewith and longitudinal movement thereon, and a second pinion which is adapted to operatively engage a part of the engine to be started and with which the first pinion is adapted to mesh when the screw shaft is rotated, said first pinion having a projection adapted to en age the second pmion and move it longitu inally in one direction and the second pinion having a rojection adapted to be engaged by said st named projection whereby the second pinion is moved longitudinally in the other direction.

8. In a drive of the character described, the combination of a rotatable screw shaft, a pinion screw threaded thereon for rotary movement therewith and longitudinal movement thereon, and a second pinion which is adapted to operatively engage a art of the engine to be started and with which the first pinion is adapted to mesh when the screw shaft is rotated, said second pinion having an extension provided with a reduced portion forming two opposed shoulders, and the first pinion havingla projection adapted to g be received by suc reduced portion and to cooperate with said shoulders.

9. In a' drive of the character described,

teethand adapted to cooperate with meshed with the first the combination of the combination of a rotatable screw shaft,

a pinion screw threaded thereon for rotary movement therewith and longitudinal movement thereon, and a second pinion which is adapted to operatively engage a part of the engine to be started and with which the first pinion is adapted to mesh whenthe screw shaft is rotated, said second pinion having an extensiomprovided with a reduced portion forming two opposed shoulders, and

the first pinion havin a projection adapted .to be received by suc reduced portion and to cooperate with said shoulders and the first pinion having at one end a jecting beyond the outer edge of the pimon shoulders.

10. In a device .of the character described, the combination of a rotatable screw shaft, a pinion screw threaded thereon for rotary movement therewith and longitudinal movediskpro- I said ment thereon, a plain shaft parallel to the screw shaft, a second pinion mounted to rotate and to slide loosely'therhomsaid second.

pinion being located in a posltion to be pinion when the'latter moves longitudinally of the screw shaft. 11. In a drive of the character described, the combination of a drivin shaft, a rotatable member driven there y, a driving member'mounted on the rotatable member for rotary movement therewith and longitudinal movement thereof, a shaft parallel to the drivin shaft, and a second driving member w 'ch is mounted on the secondnamed shaft and operated and controlled by the first-named driving member, and whic is adapted to be'thereby operatively engaged with apart of the englne to be started. i

12. In a drive of the character described,

the combination of a drivin shaft, a hollow screw shaft encircling the riving shaft and driven thereby, a drlving member mounted on the screw shaft for rotary movement therewith and longitudinal movement thereof, and a second drivin operated and controlled y the first driving member and which is adapted to be thereby operatively engaged with a part of the en- 'ne to be started. I

14. In a drive of the character described, a driving shaft, a hollow screw shaft encircling the driving shaft and member which is driven thereby, a pinion screw-threaded on the screw shaft for rotary movement therewith and longitudinal movement thereof, and a second pinion which is operated and controlled by the first pinion and which is adapted to be thereby operatively engaged With a part of the engine to be started.

15. In a drive of the character described, the combination of a motor-driven member mountedi'or automatic longitudinal movement when the motor is operated, and a driving member mounted for rotary and longitudinal movement and, when moved longitudinally, adapted to be engaged with a part of the engine to be started, said driving member being so moved longitudinally by the first-named member in its longitudinal movement.

VINCENT BENDIX. 

